The incidence of cannabinoids in fatally injured drivers: an investigation by radioimmunoassay and high pressure liquid chromatography

Factors affecting the drinking driver

Although the relationship between alcohol and traffic safety has been the subject of numerous studies, much remains unknown about the mechanisms by which alcohol contributes to traffic accidents. A number of other factors, which are reviewed in this paper, also can contribute to car accidents. They may also interact with alcohol, perhaps in a complex manner. Therefore, multiple factors rather than one single factor may contribute to automobile accidents for those who drink and drive.

Quantitative measurement of delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol and two major metabolites in physiological specimens using capillary column gas chromatography negative ion chemical ionization mass spectrometry

delta 9-Tetrahydrocannabinol and two of its metabolites, 11-hydroxy-delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol and 11-nor-9-carboxy-delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol, can be measured in a single 1-ml sample of blood, plasma, or urine by a new assay which combines a relatively rapid extraction procedure with capillary column gas chromatography and negative ion chemical ionization mass spectrometry. Deuterium-labeled analogs of each cannabinoid are added to the physiological specimen as internal standards. Two extracts are obtained from each sample: a neutral fraction containing delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol and 11-hydroxy-delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol, and an acid fraction containing 11-nor-9-carboxy-delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol. The neutral fraction is derivatized by treatment with trifluoroacetic anhydride; the acid fraction is first treated with BF3-methanol followed by reaction with trifluoroacetic anhydride. Under electron-capture chemical ionization conditions the derivatized delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol and 11-nor-9-carboxy-delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol give abundant molecular anions ideally suited for selected ion monitoring. The negative ion chemical ionization spectrum of the HO-THC-trifluoroacetate shows no molecular anion. Consequently, quantitation of the hydroxy metabolite is achieved by monitoring a fragment ion formed by loss of CF3CO2 from its molecular anion. The limits of reliable measurement are judged to be 0.1 ng ml-1 for 11-nor-9-carboxy-delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol, 0.2 ng ml-1 for delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol and 0.5 ng ml-1 for 11-hydroxy-delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol. Four examples are given of the application of the assay to the analysis of specimens of medico-legal importance.

Combined high-pressure liquid chromatography and radioimmunoassay method for the quantitation of delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol and some of its metabolites in human plasma

A high-pressure liquid chromatography-radioimmunoassay (HPLC-RIA) method for the measurement of cannabinoid levels in plasma is described. The method is capable of quantifying 0.1 ng of a cannabinoid in 1 ml of plasma. The experimental procedure consists of an initial separation of cannabinoids in a plasma extract by HPLC followed by collection of the HPLC eluate and RIA. A chromatogram consisting of the cross-reacting cannabinoids in plasma may then be constructed. The plasma concentrations of cannabinoids with retention volumes equivalent to those of delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol, cannabinol and mono-hydroxylated metabolites have been measured by this technique.